Chapter 514: Divine (5)

3rd Person POV

"Lachlan, what are you doing with the corpse of our friends?!" Sarah demanded as she saw the corpses of those heroes shrivel up

"I'm getting stronger." Lachlan argued, "We can't retreat again and again, we'll just play into their game, they've caught us by surprise by going on offense instead of defense."

"Yeah, they even managed to get the yellow rose for themselves." Trevor chimed in as he was Bora and some krakens fighting the giants and dominating. So what do we do now?"

The 3 strongest of the group stayed and tried to strategize as the rest were keeping Perseus Occupied, but it came at the cost of a few of their lives. One even tried running away, but Perseus caught them in time and killed them with a blade formed by black petals right into his back.

Demons joined in the fight as well, but they died before they could even come close as Perseus released a storm of raining black petals.

Whatever Perseus had become, it was too powerful. Sacrifices have to be made and that's why Trevor didn't argue against Lachlan siphoning some uses out of the strong. It was desperation even though he knew it was wrong. 

"Continue fighting." Lachlan snarled, "I will never surrender."

"We both won't have enough forces to fight each other even if we do win." Sarah countered

"So what?! Just delay the war again, we've fought for centuries, it could wait a little longer."

"It's unfair for us, we can't live that long, you can just pass your power down to a replacement and for us, the ritual requires sacrifices."

"And the sacrifices in this war are more than enough."

As the reality of their impending defeat set in, a sense of frustration and fear gripped the hearts of the heroes, the demon lord, and their followers. They had been promised absolute victory, assured that their combined might would crush any who dared to oppose them. But now, faced with the overwhelming power of the god of victory, their hopes lay shattered like fragile glass.

In their desperation, they exchanged anxious glances, their minds racing with thoughts of what would come after their inevitable defeat. They had sought to eliminate a common enemy, cement their dominance over the land, and claim their rightful place as rulers of the world.

But instead, they found themselves on the receiving end of doom, their dreams of conquest crumbling to dust before their very eyes.

The heroes now found themselves questioning the righteousness of their cause. The demon lord, once a fearsome tyrant, now trembled at the thought of facing the wrath of a god.

And the humans and demons who had rallied to their cause now stood on the brink of despair, their hopes of glory fading into oblivion.

But amidst the chaos and despair, a sense of grim determination began to take root. Though they knew that their chances of victory were slim, they refused to go down without a fight. With gritted teeth and steely resolve, they prepared to make their last stand, knowing that even in defeat, they would go down fighting.

For though they may have been outmatched by the god of victory, they would not let their spirits be broken so easily. And as they braced themselves for the final confrontation, they vowed to face whatever fate awaited them with courage and defiance, for in the end, they would be remembered as warriors who stood firm in the face of impossible odds.

"One thing for sure is we know that he won't kill all of us." Trevor said

"Why?" Sarah asked

"What do you think will happen after all of this is over?" Lachlan asked, "There will be a power vacuum, a void left in the wake of our defeat. And in that void, there will be resistance."

"But if we're defeated, won't the Perseus just simply take over? What resistance could there possibly be? No one can beat him if he can defeat all of us here."

"The resistance will come from within. With our demise, chaos will ensue. The factions we've held together by force will splinter. Each seeking to fill the void left by our absence."

"And in that chaos, there will be infighting. Ambitious warlords, power-hungry nobles, and vengeful survivors will vie for control. The land will become a battleground, not just between humans and demons, but among ourselves." Trevor nodded, "He'll need us to help control that, we can then bid our time."

"Exactly, and when that time comes, we can bid our time, waiting for the right moment to seize power once more." Lachlan agreed, "For now, we'll just hope that it won't come to that."

"Alright." Sarah nodded, "Then we must fight not just for victory, but for a better future."

As the heroes and the Demon Lord charged at the god of victory once more, their determination burning brighter than ever, the air crackled with the intensity of their power. But before they could unleash their final assault, Perseus raised his hand.

With a commanding gesture, he summoned forth a blinding cascade of light, its brilliance illuminating the battlefield with an intensity that surpassed the light of a thousand suns. As the heroes and the Demon Lord watched in stunned disbelief, the very ground beneath their feet began to tremble, cracks forming and widening as if the earth itself were about to split asunder.

"Yehi or(Let there be light)" Perseus shouted as he brought his hand down.

In an instant, the world was consumed by a blinding flash of searing brilliance, its intensity rivaling that of the sun itself. The heroes and the Demon Lord were engulfed in its radiance, their forms rendered as mere silhouettes against the blinding light.

And then, just as quickly as it had begun, the light faded, leaving behind a scene of utter devastation.

The heroes and the Demon Lord stood amidst the devastation, their forms battered and broken by the force of the spell. Their armor was charred and blackened, their flesh seared by the intense heat of the divine light, their bodies scorched and battered by the force of the divine spell as they all fell to the ground.